Silver Oak Cellars Unveils New Winery and Tasting Room in Oakville

New Facility Designed Exclusively for Napa Valley Cabernet
Sauvignon; Vertical Tastings Among New Offerings for Guests
OAKVILLE, Calif.--(Business Wire)--
Silver Oak Cellars, producer of Cabernet Sauvignon from both Napa
and Alexander Valley, has announced the opening of its new winery and
tasting room in Oakville. Re-built from the ground up after the
original facility suffered a fire in 2006, the winery is designed to
produce one wine only, the Silver Oak Cellars Napa Valley Cabernet
Sauvignon. Its first grapes were received September 1st. The new
timber-framed tasting room features reclaimed stone, oak and redwood
and is evocative of the original tasting room built in 1981. Open
September 29th, the winery is certain to remain a beloved Napa Valley
destination.

"Though the fire was devastating, it presented us with a
once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," said Silver Oak President, David
Duncan, son of Silver Oak co-founder Raymond Duncan and leader of the
rebuilding project. "We were able to take 35 years of experience in
both winemaking and hospitality and apply it to create an ideal space
for making our Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon and entertaining our
guests."

The winery features a soaring, sky-lit fermentation barn, an
eastern-facing crush pad and a tilt-up concrete barrel chai with 11"
thick walls and four individual temperature and humidity-controlled
bays. The facility has no columns, minimizing obstacles for harvest
traffic and work flow and allowing for maximum flexibility in the
future.

"The new winery is a winemaker's dream. We incorporated all the
technological advancements of recent years into the winery's design
but made sure we could accommodate changes down the line," says
Winemaker Daniel Baron. "There's no doubt that wine quality will
improve as a result."

A courtyard and fountain, anchored by Silver Oak's iconic water
tower, provide the entrance to the tasting room area where visitors to
the winery will find a huge stone fireplace, the Glass House wine
library with a display of vintages dating back to the 1970's, and a
barrel chai. A History Gallery with memorabilia from the original
Silver Oak Cellars and a time capsule also add to the unique features.
The interior of the tasting room and the exterior of the winery are
built from hand-quarried limestone reclaimed from an 1800's flour mill
in Coffeeville, Kansas.

"Our hospitality area honors our history and has a friendly,
familiar feel, but we also wanted to offer our guests something new,"
says Duncan. "With the materials we've used and the craftsmanship
throughout, we've tried to create a very memorable tactile experience,
where people use all their senses to experience the wines and the
winery."

In conjunction with its opening, Silver Oak created several new
tasting experiences for visitors. In addition to tastings of its
current releases in the tasting room, the winery offers - by
appointment only - a Silver Tour and Taste and a Silver Tour and Food
Pairing, featuring foods prepared by Winery Chef Dominic Orsini. Four
times a week it also offers Collectors' Tastings featuring six-year
verticals of either its Napa Valley or Alexander Valley Cabernet
Sauvignons. Consumers interested in booking a tour and/or tasting may
call the winery at 800.273.8809.

"We want to offer rare, unforgettable experiences to wine lovers
and collectors," says Director of Retail Sales and Hospitality
Kathleen McLeod. "For decades the winery has set aside a portion of
wines to be cellared and re-released at a later date, resulting in an
extensive library from each vintage. We're very fortunate to be able
to share these wines."

Silver Oak Cellars will celebrate the grand opening of the new
Oakville winery at its upcoming Release Day on February 7, 2009. A
Silver Oak tradition for nearly two decades, Release Day celebrates
the release of the winery's newest vintage with an entire day devoted
to savoring delicious wine and food and reconnecting with old friends.
For more information about Release Day consumers may go to the website
at www.silveroak.com.

The architect for the new Silver Oak Cellars in Oakville was
Taylor Lombardo Architects of San Francisco. The contractor was Cello
& Maudru of Napa.

Silver Oak Cellars was co-founded in 1972 by Raymond Duncan and
Justin Meyer. Dedicated exclusively to producing Cabernet Sauvignon
that is aged and drinkable upon release, the winery makes two wines at
two separate facilities: Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon at its winery
in Oakville and Alexander Valley Cabernet Sauvignon at the winery in
Geyserville, Sonoma County. When Justin Meyer retired in 2001 he sold
his share of Silver Oak to the Duncan family. Today, Silver Oak
Cellars is run by founder Raymond Duncan's two sons, David and Tim
Duncan, who adhere to the principle of continuous improvement and the
high standards of quality that Justin and Ray established so many
years ago.

Visit us at www.silveroak.com

Silver Oak Cellars
April Damron, 707-942-7030
or
Cronin Communications
Mora Cronin, 707-963-8157

Copyright Business Wire 2008